Crown closure



Oct. 10, 1967 J. LEEMANN 3,346,134

CROWN CLOSURE Filed Dec. 6, 1965 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 ORA E y J. LEEMANN CROWN CLOSURE Oct. 10, 1967 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Dec. 6, 1965 4343330 v/wzwm United States Patent C) 3,346,134 CROWN CLOSURE Johannes Leemann, Geneva, Switzerland, assignor to Crown Cork Company (Belgium) S.A., Merxem, Antwerp, Belgium, a corporation of Belgium Filed Dec. 6, 1965, Ser. No. 511,798 Claims priority, application Belgium, Dec. 8, 1964, 6,372, Patent 656,829; Jan. 27, 1965, 8,262, Patent 658,911; Feb. 3, 1965, 8,522, Patent 659,213; Feb. 14, 1965, 16,715, Patent 668,331

7 Claims. (Cl. 215-39) The present invention relates to a crown closure with a flat or slightly domed based and a closure skirt extending radially and projecting in relation to the said base, and having teeth or undulations.

The crown closure of the invention is provided with an optional sealing disc of metal and a sealing joint of cork or other natural or synthetic material. The sealing disc is applied against the internal face of the said base whereas the sealing joint is arranged in abutment against the said sealing joint on the inside of the closure skirt.

The crown closure of the invention is adapted to close bottles or similar containers with a neck having at least one external lateral screw-thread arranged in the vicinity of its rim, and generally speaking extending helicoidally about the axis of the said neck.

When the said crown closure closes a bottle, the base of the crown closure is applied against the rim of the neck of the bottle with interposition of the optional sealing disc and of the sealing joint, whereas the closure skirt of the said crown closure is applied, in the main by seating, on the external lateral screw-thread of the said neck, with the result that the teeth of the closure skirt are accordingly deformed and show a screw-thread corresponding to that of the neck of the bottle.

The bottle closed in this Way by a crown closure of this type can be opened or unstoppered by unscrewing the closure skirt of the crown closure from the'external lateral thread of the neck or by unclamping the said closure skirt from the screw thread of the neck. Furthermore, the bottle opened in this way can be closed again or re-stoppered by rescrewing the closure skirt of the crown closure on the external lateral screw-thread of the neck or by reclamping the said closure skirt on the said thread of the neck, by virtue of the presence of the lateral screw-thread stamped in the teeth of the said closure skirt.

The unscrewing or unclamping of the closure skirt of the crown closure closing the bottle necessitates the application of a comparatively large couple to the said crown closure. To a lesser extent, the rescrewing or reclamping of the said closure skirt on the external lateral screw-thread of the neck of the bottle requires the transmission of a quite considerable couple to the crown closure. I 1

Up to the present, the unscrewing or unclamping couple and the above-mentioned rescrewing or reclamping couple is applied manually to the crown closure by holding the closure skirt of the crown closure between the fingers and by exerting the said opposing forces thereon.

The aim of the present invention is to facilitate to a considerable extent the manual application of the said couple to the crown closure, by the use of an intermediate piece on which the said couple is exerted and by which it is transmitted to the crown closurehThe use of such piece makes it ossible to avoid the injuries to the fingers which frequently occur during the unscrewing or unclamping of the closure skirt of a standard crown closure from the external lateral screw-thread of the neck of a bottle.

3,346,134 Patented Oct. 10, 1967 For this purpose, the base of the crown closure of the invention has a central elongated part which forms or which can form an elongated lodging adapted to receive an intermediate piece. By pressing on the longitudinal edges of the said lodging the intermediate piece makes it possible to apply to the crown closure the couple which is necessary for the unscrewing or the unclamping, or alternatively for the rescrewing or reclamping.

The said central elongated part of the base of the crown closure can form the said elongated lodging in several ways, before the application of the crown closure onto the bottle.

According to one embodiment of the invention, the central elongated part of the base can have an elongated opening that is preferably cut out of the said base. The couple necessary for the unscrewing or rescrewing of the closure skirt of the crown closure is transmitted to the base of the latter in the pressing of the said intermediate piece against the longitudinal edges of the elongated lodging receiving the said piece. To increase the resistance of the said edges to deformation under the effect of the couple, the said walls or edges are reinforced by the presence of grooves and ribs in the remaining part of the base of the crown closure. The said grooves and ribs alternate and extend on both sides of the walls or longitudinal edges of the elongated central part of the base forming the said lodging. Generally speaking, the said grooves and ribs are symmetrical in relation to the elongated central part of the base.

The reinforcing grooves and ribs above-mentioned can form undulations or toothings, preferably regular, in the remaining part of the base.

The elongated central .part of the base of the crown cork can also form the said elongated lodging in many ways after the application of the crown closure onto the bottle. In this case the elongated central part of the base is sunk or depressed in relation to the remaining part of the latter to form the elongated lodging receiving the piece for the application of the unscrewing or rescrewing couple mentioned above.

For it to be possible for the elongated central part to be sunk in or depressed easily in realtion to the remaining part of the base, the said central part can be constructed in such a way that the adjacent edges of the elongated central part and of the remaining part of the base are adjoining over a portion of the periphery of the said central part and are separated from each other by an opening or a narrow gap on the remaining part of the periphery of the said central part. Accordingly, a pair of adjacent longitudinal edges of the elongated central part and of the remaining part of the base are adjacent to each other, whereas the other pair of adjacent longitudinal edges of these parts of the said base and the adjacent transverse edge of the said parts of the said base are separated from each other by a continuous narrow gap.

In accordance with an advantageous embodiment of the invention, the elongated central part of the base, after having been sunk in, is divided into two parts. One of these portions is adjacent to the remaining portion of the said base along one of the longitudinal edges of the central part of the base whereas the other portion is adjacent to the remaining portion of the base along the other, opposite, longitudinal edge of the central part of the said base. To reinforce the longitudinal edges of the said lodging made by the sinking in of the two portions of the central part of the base, the latter, which are adjacent at the remaining part of the base and along the longitudinal adjacent edges of these parts of the base, are bent back against the internal face of the remaining part of the base, about its longitudinal edges.

The invention will now be described with reference to the accompanying drawings, which show diagrammaticab ly and in no restrictive sense, several embodiments of the crown closure of the invention.

FIGURE 1 is a view in elevation showing a crown closure of the invention and a bottle to be closed by the latter.

FIGURE 2 is a similar view in elevation showing the crown closure and the bottle closed by the latter.

FIGURE 3 is a perspective view of a first embodiment of the crown closure of the invention, having a base with elongated central part that is cut out.

FIGURE, 4 is a transverse section of the crown closure of FIGURE 3, taken in the longitudinal direction of the opening of the base.

FIGURE 5 is a transverse section of the crown closure taken along the transverse direction of the opening of the base.

FIGURES 6, 7 and 8 are views in perspective of three other embodiments of the crown closure of the invention in which the base has an elongated central opening with longitudinal edges reinforced by special grooves and ribs.

FIGURE 9 is a view in perspective of a fifth embodiment of the crown closure, with the elongated central part of the base connected to the remaining part of the latter and being at the same time adjacent thereto and separate therefrom.

FIGURE 10 is a view in perspecive of a sixth embodiment of the crown closure, with the central elongated part of the base divided into two portions each adjacent to the remaining part of the base. 7

FIGURE 11 shows another embodiment of the crown closure which is similar to that above, but in which the two portions of the elongated central part of the base are bent back against the internal face of the remaining part of the base.

In the various figures the same reference numbers have been given to designate identical parts.

The crown closure of the invention is used to close a bottle or a similar container with a neck 1 having at least one external lateral screw-thread 2 in the vicinity of its rim 3. In the embodiments shown, the neck 1 of the bottle has two lateral external screw-threads 2 which extend helicoidally about the axis of the said bottle. The crown closure is in general metallic and comprises a base 4 and a closure skirt 5. The base 4 is flat or slightly domed. Furthermore, the closure skirt 5 extends radially and projects in relation to the base 4. The said closure skirt 5 has in addition teeth 6, or, instead of these, corresponding undulations.

The crown closure has an optional sealing disc 7 that is deformable and of metal, and a sealing joint 8 constituted for example of cork or other suitable natural or synthetic material. The sealing disc 7 is applied against the base 4 of the crown closure, whereas the sealing joint 8 is placed against the said sealing disc inside the closure skirt.

When the crown closure closes the bottle, the base 4 of the crown closure is applied against the rim 3 of the neck with interposition of the optional sealing disc 7 and of the sealing joint 8, whereas the closure skirt 5 of the said crown closure is applied, in the main by seating, against the internal lateral screw-threads 2 of the neck '1. In the application of the closure skirt 5 against the said screw-threads 2 of the neck 1, the teeth 6 of the said closure skirt 5 deform in order to form screw-threads corresponding to those of the neck of the bottle. By virtue of these screw-threads stamped in the teeth 6, the closure skirt 5 of the crown closure can be unscrewed or unclamped from the external lateral screw-threads 2 of the neck and after at least a part of the contents of the bottle has been removed, the said closure skirt 5 can be rescrewed or reclamped onto the external lateral screwthreads 2 of the neck 1.

The inventive idea resides in the fact that the base 4 of the crown closure has an elongated central part, for example rectangular, forming or able to form an elongated lodging in which one can introduce a suitable intermediate piece, in particular a coin, on which one can exert the couple necessary for the unscrewing of the closure skirt 5 from the external lateral screw-threads 2 of the neck 1, or the couple necessary for the rescrewing of the said closure skirt 5 onto the screw-threads 2 of the neck 1, and by which one can transmit the said couple to the crown closure.

The said elongated lodging can be formed in and shown by the base 4 of the crown closure before or after the application of the latter on the neck 1 of the bottle to close said bottle.

In the first, second, third, fourth and seventh embodiments of the crown closure,'the base 4 of the latter shows the elongated lodging before the application of the crown closure onto the neck 1. On the other hand, in the fifth and sixth embodiments of the crown closure, the elongated lodging is formed in the base 4 after the application of the said crown closure onto the bottle and after the said bottle has been closed.

In the first embodiment, the elongated central part of the base 4 has an opening 9 which is cut out in the said base and forms the said lodging.

The three following embodiments of the crown closure are improvements of the above construction. In these three examples, the elongated central part of the base again has the longitudinal opening 9. The improvements considered above concern the strengthening or reinforcing of the longitudinal edges of the said opening 9 by alternating grooves 10 and ribs 11 which are arranged in the remaining part of the base 4 on both sides of the said opening 9. By virtue of these grooves 10 and ribs 11, the longitudinal edges of the elongated opening 9, against which the said intermediate piece presses in the transmission of the couple for unscrewing or rescrewing the crown closure, are. better able to withstand deformation under the effect of the said couple.

The three. last-mentioned embodiments of the crown closure differ from each other solely by the arrangement of the grooves 10 and the ribs 11 in relation to the elongated central part of the base 4 forming the said lodging. In the second embodiment, the grooves 10 and the ribs 11 are rectilinear and aligned perpendicularly to the longitudinal direction of the opening 9. In the third embodiment, the said grooves 10 and ribs 11 are again rectilinear, but, they are aligned parallel to the longitudinal direction of the opening 9. In the fourth embodiment, the said grooves 10 and ribs 11' are curvilinear and may even be circular. They are concentric to the closure skirt 5 of the crown closure, i.e. words that are centred in relation to the centre of the base 4 of the opening 9.

In other embodiments which are not shown, the grooves 10 and the ribs 11 can be aligned obliquely in relation to the longitudinal direction of the opening 9 presented by the elongated central part of the base 4.

In the last three examples selected and illustrated the grooves 10 and the ribs 11 form undulations that are preferably regular. In other examples the said grooves 10 and ribs 11 can form toothings, preferably regular, extending in saw-tooth formation.

In the following embodiments of the crown closure the elongated central part does not form the said lodging of the piece for the application of the unscrewing or rescrewing couple before the placing of the crown closure on theneck 1 of the bottle and before the closing of the latter; in actual fact the said central part only forms the said lodging after the closing of the bottle, in particular at the moment of the opening of the latter. The last embodiment nevertheless forms an exception to this. feature.

Accordingly for the said embodiments the elongated central part of the base should be sunk in in relation to the remaining part of the latter so as to be able to form the said elongated lodging. The said embodiments differ from each other by the methods of connecting the elongated central part with the remaining part of the base.

In the fifth embodiment, the elongated central part of the base 4 is adjacent to the remaining part of the latter solely along a pair of longitudinal adjacent edges of these parts of the base, said edges being in this case apparent, and is separated from the remaining part of the base by a continuous gap 12 extending along the other pair of adjacent edges, longitudinal and in this case real, of these parts of the base and along the two pairs of adjacent, real, transverse edges of the said parts of the base. Accordingly this embodiment is a particular case of the embodiment in which the elongated central part of the base is adjacent to the remaining part of the base on one portion of the adjacent apparent edges or on one part of the periphery of the said central part and is separated from this remaining part of the base by a thin, continuous gap, on the remaining portion of the said adjacent, real edges or on the remaining portion of the periphery of the said central part.

In the last two embodiments, the elongated central part of the base 4, at least after having been sunk in, is divided into two distinct portions 13 and 14, in particular into two halves. These two portions 13 and 14 are adjacent to the remaining part of the base along the longitudinal adjacent edges of the central part and of the remaining part of the said base, but are separated from this remaining part of the base by two thin, transverse gaps 15 and 16 along the adjacent transverse edges of the said parts of the base. Preferably the portions 13 and 14 are separated from each other along their common edges by a thin, longitudinal gap 17, extending from the gap 15 to the gap 16 between the adjacent, longitudinal, apparent edges of the two parts of the base.

Finally, in the last embodiment, the two portions 13 and 14 of the elongated central part of the base 4 are bent back at 180 from their initial position in which they are in the extension of the remaining part of the said base. After being bent back about the adjacent longitudinal apparent edges of the central part and of the remaining part of the base 4, the said portions 13 and 14 are located in abutment of the internal face of the remaining part of the said base, between the latter and the sealing disc 7. By bending back the portions 13 and 14 in this way it is possible to reinforce the longitudinal edges of the elongated opening obtained, to withstand any deformation due to the application of the unscrewing or rescrewing couple by means of the said intermediate piece.

It is obvious that the invention is not exclusively limited to the embodiments shown and that modifications can be made in the form of the arrangement and the construction of the certain of the elements used in carrying out the invention, with the proviso that these modifications are not in contradiction to the object of each of the following claims.

What I claim is:

1. In combination a bottle having a neck with at least one external lateral screw-thread in the vicinity of its rim and a crown closure closing said bottle, said crown closure comprising a sealing disc applied onto said rim of said neck, a metallic disc applied onto said sealing disc, at. base applied onto said metallic disc, the central part of said base presenting an elongated opening, a closure skirt depending from said base onto said external lateral screwthread of said neck and deformed about said screw-thread to form a corresponding screw thread in said skirt, said elongated opening of said base being adapted to receive means which by pressing on its longitudinal edges makes it possible to apply to the crown closure an unscrewing couple or a rescrewing couple to thereby effect unsealing and resealing of said bottle.

2. In combination a bottle having a neck with at least one external lateral screw-thread in the vicinity of its rim and a crown closure closing said bottle, said crown closure comprising a sealing disc applied onto said rim of said neck, a metallic disc appied onto said sealing disc, a base applied onto said metallic disc, the central part of said base being cut to present an elongated opening, a closure skirt depending from said base applied onto said external lateral screw-thread of said neck and deformed about said screw-thread to form a corresponding screw-thread in said skirt, said elongated opening of said base being adapted to receive a commonly available means such as a coin which by pressing on the longitudinal edges of said elongated opening makes it possible to apply to the crown closure an unscrewing couple or a rescrewing couple.

3. The structure defined in claim 2 wherein the elongated opening in the base of the crown closure comprises an elongated out having a transverse cut at each end thereof.

4. The structure defined in claim 3 wherein the transverse cuts intersect and extend from one longitudinal edge of the elongated cut so as to define a single depressible portion of the base which forms the elongated opening. 5. The structure defined in claim 3 wherein the transverse cuts intersect and extend from each opposed longitudinal edge of the elongated cut so as to define two depressible portions of said base which form said elongated opening.

6. In combination a bottle having a neck with at least one external later-a1 screw-thread in the vicinity of its rim and a crown closure closing said bottle, said crown closure comprising a sealing disc applied onto said rim of said neck, a metallic disc applied onto said sealing disc, a base applied onto said metallic disc, the central part of said base being cut to present an elongated opening having edges reinforced by grooves and ribs extending perpendicularly to said edges, a closure skirt depending from the periphery of said base applied onto said external lateral screw-thread of said neck and deformed about said screwthread to form a corresponding screw-thread in said skirt, said elongated opening of said base being adapted to receive a commonly available means such as a coin which by pressing on the longitudinal edges of said elongated opening permits both an unscrewing couple and a rescrewing couple to be applied to said crown closure to effect unsealing and resealing, respectively, of said bottle.

7. In combination a bottle having a neck with at least one external lateral screw-thread in the vicinity of its rim and a crown closure closing said bottle, said crown closure comprising a sealing disc applied onto said rim of said neck, a metallic disc applied onto said sealing disc, a base applied onto said metallic disc, the central part of said base being cut to present an elongated opening, the edges of said elongated opening being reinforced by grooves and ribs extending parallel to said edges, a closure skirt depending from the periphery of said base applied onto said external lateral screw-thread of said neck and deformed about said screw-thread to form a correspond ing screw-thread in said skirt, said elongated opening of said base being adapted to receive a commonly available means such as a coin which by pressing on the longitudinal edges of said elongated slot permits both an unscrewing couple and a rescrewing couple to be readily applied to said crown closure to effect unsealing and resealing, respectively, of said bottle.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,671,015 5/1928 Deny 21546 1,912,969 6/1933 Carvalho 215-46 2,304,826 12/ 1942 Jackson 215-39 2,443,181 6/ 1948 Beeson 21546 JOSEPH R. LECLAIR, Primary Examiner.

D. F. NORTON, Assistant Examiner. 

1. IN COMBINATION A BOTTLE HAVING A NECK WITH AT LEAST ONE EXTERNAL LATERAL SCREW-THREAD IN THE VICINITY OF ITS RIM AND A CROWN CLOSURE CLOSING SAID BOTTLE, SAID CROWN CLOSURE COMPRISING A SEALING DISC APPLIED ONTO SAID RIM OF SAID NECK, A METALLIC DISC APPLIED ONTO SAID SEALING DISC, A BASE APPLIED ONTO SAID METALLIC DISC, THE CENTRAL PART OF SAID BASE PRESENTING AN ELONGATED OPENING, A CLOSURE SKIRT DEPENDING FROM SAID BASE ONTO SAID EXTERNAL LATERAL SCREWTHREAD OF SAID NECK AND DEFORMED ABOUT SAID SCREW-THREAD TO FORM A CORRESPONDING SCREW THREAD IN SAID SKIRT, SAID ELONGATED OPENING OF SAID BASE BEING ADAPTED TO RECEIVE MEANS WHICH BY PRESSING ON ITS LONGITUDINAL EDGES MAKES IT POSSIBLE TO APPLY TO THE CROWN CLOSURE AN UNSCREWING COUPLE OR A RESCREWING COUPLE TO THEREBY EFFECT UNSEALING AND RESEALING OF SAID BOTTLE. 